Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Boosts Holdings in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its stake in Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) by 4.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,050,747 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 130,053 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $370,361,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Philip Morris International by 684.4% in the second quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 251 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new position in shares of Philip Morris International during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Sachetta LLC lifted its stake in Philip Morris International by 64.8% in the second quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 267 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its holdings in Philip Morris International by 57.4% in the second quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 318 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Olistico Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Philip Morris International during the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. Institutional investors own 78.63% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Philip Morris International

In other news, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.98, for a total transaction of $974,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 95,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,402,431.64. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Philip Morris International news, insider Werner Barth sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.98, for a total transaction of $974,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 95,418 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,402,431.64. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Andre Calantzopoulos sold 101,918 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.85, for a total transaction of $13,234,052.30. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 959,761 shares in the company, valued at $124,624,965.85. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on PM. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 target price (up previously from $138.00) on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com upgraded Philip Morris International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Barclays raised their target price on Philip Morris International from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Philip Morris International from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $118.50 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Philip Morris International presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $127.85.

Philip Morris International Price Performance

PM stock opened at $124.99 on Tuesday. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 1-year low of $87.82 and a 1-year high of $134.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $194.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.54. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $124.24 and a 200-day moving average price of $112.81.

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82 by $0.09. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 10.35% and a negative return on equity of 117.94%. The firm had revenue of $9.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.68 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.67 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Philip Morris International Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 26th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.32%. This is a boost from Philip Morris International’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 26th. Philip Morris International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 85.71%.

About Philip Morris International

Philip Morris International Inc operates as a tobacco company working to delivers a smoke-free future and evolving portfolio for the long-term to include products outside of the tobacco and nicotine sector. The company's product portfolio primarily consists of cigarettes and smoke-free products, including heat-not-burn, vapor, and oral nicotine products primarily under the IQOS and ZYN brands; and consumer accessories, such as lighters and matches.